Dreaming
by b-chan1
Summary: A reccuring theme in Cowboy Bebop is It's all a dream. What if it was? Spoilers.
1. Where would 'here' be again?

I own only the characters that don't appear in the show. If you've seen them moving, you hallucinate, or they belong to the guy who did Cowboy Bebop.  
  
Spoilers Galore. You have been warned.  
  
Basic Plot: An overall theme in Cowboy Bebop is It's All a Dream. What if it was? Spike wakes up after the end of the 26th episode, and discovers that the entire series was a cold sleep dream. He begins searching for a remnant of his life on the Bebop, and finds more than he bargains for.  
  
Edit: I finally got off my ass and decided to finish this. Do you all hate me? I'm sorry..  
  
Dreaming  
  
Spike stumbled down the steps, his mind thinking of all the people who had died. Julia was dead, shot by a member of the Red Dragon. He still loved her, and it hurt.  
  
He was dying.  
  
Shin. He was a great guy, when you got right down to it. What more could you want in a friend?  
  
He could feel his mind fading.  
  
Vicious. He felt no remorse about him. They were friends once, but Spike couldn't be around people like him, cruel and cold.  
  
The cowboy stopped, knowing he hadn't the strength to go on. Thinking of all the people he would leave behind, he knew that they were strong enough to go on without him. Jet could take care of himself, and Faye was a smart girl who could live on her own. Ed was only a teenager, but she was well off with Tomato, Ein, and her father. She could live a healthy life and grow up to be a great person.  
  
Spike Speigel, a bounty hunter, cowboy, and former Red Dragon member raised his fingers. Aiming at the sky, he shot out the sun.  
  
"Bang".  
  
He dropped.  
  
CVYCVYCVYCVY  
  
He woke, sweating. Looking up, he saw a large collection of lights. It looked like what Faye described when she woke up from Cold Sleep, actually.  
  
Cold Sleep? When did he get into CS? He would ask Jet. Jet would know.  
  
"Ah, he's awake. Look at me, please".  
  
Spike looked towards the voice. It came from a sickeningly cheerful doctor who must be inspecting him, making sure there were no remaining injuries. It was too early for a doctor to be cheerful.  
  
"It's too early for you to be cheerful." Spike muttered. He hated happy people when he was like this.  
  
The doctor refused to let Spike's dour attitude ruin his day. He was getting married in a week, and everybody should be happy, just like him.  
  
Sitting up, Spike grabbed the cheerful doctor by the throat, digging his thumb and middle finger into the soft skin right behind the jawbone. It was painful.  
  
Looking straight into the doctor's eyes, Spike spoke very clearly, enunciating each word.  
  
"I'm going to ask you some questions. They are going to be Yes-Or-No. You are going to answer them by nodding or shaking your head. You will not say a word. Do you understand?"  
  
The doctor feebly attempted to nod. When that failed, he bugged his eyes out a little more, hoping it got the message across.  
  
Spike set the man down, and began rubbing his head. Getting up that quickly had given him a killer headache. Was this some new sort of booze he got? Did he get wildly raging drunk, and pass out? If he did.He really didn't want to know what Faye had done while he was zoned. Quickly, he checked his wallet. He didn't find it. He didn't find anything, for that matter. No pants. Or a shirt. Or.he hoped the doctor was straight.  
  
Glaring at the doctor, he began the questioning.  
  
"First, where the hell am I?  
  
The doctor fumbled for a minute, then backpedaled, attempting to get as much space between him and the violent man as possible.  
  
Realizing his faux pas, Spike quickly rephrased the question. It didn't do to look stupid in front of strangers, even if you had no idea who they were.  
  
Something about that thought bothered Spike, but he let it go. He had more important things on his mind to worry about petty details.  
  
"Okay, how about this. Am I in a hospital?  
  
Spastically, the doctor nodded. He looked vaguely like some sort of bird. A woodpecker, though Spike had only seen them in wildlife preserves on Mars when he was a kid.  
  
"Okay. Now that we have that cleared up, was I in Cold Sleep?  
  
Again, the doctor nodded. Spike almost laughed, it was kind of scary how much the doctor was frightened of him.  
  
"Calm down, I'm not gonna hurt ya. You can talk now."  
  
You could see the tension drain out of the doc's face. Very relaxing sight. The doctor just looked at Spike, not taking the chance of setting him off again.  
  
"Okay. So, why was I in Cold Sleep?  
  
That, the doctor could answer. Sort of. "Well, this is actually kind of embarrassing."  
  
That didn't sound good. "Explain", Spike demanded.  
  
The doctor loosened a tie he wasn't wearing. The action gave him some degree of comfort. Or it was a habit. Spike didn't know. Spike didn't care.  
  
"Well, we don't know. We were doing a routine check of everybody in Sleep, and we found you. Since we have no record of your being checked in, we have no idea who you are, or why you're here. We revived you as soon as-"  
  
The doctor's speech was cut off as Spike lunged and grabbed him by the next again. Doc's eyes promptly began their bulging.  
  
"You mean you just 'found' me here? You have no idea how long I've been here? You have no idea why I was frozen?"  
  
Throwing himself backwards, the doctor managed to jerk himself out of Scary Man's grip.  
  
"We do routine checks every 20 years, sir. You couldn't have been here longer than that, or we would have noticed".  
  
Spike stood up, ready to leave. "Alright, then I have one more question. Where are my clothes?"  
  
The doctor started crawling for the door. "Well, that's the other thing."  
  
CVYCVYCVYCVY  
  
"Doctor Johnson? I have a feeling I shouldn't ask." The doctor sighed, and gave his normal reply. "A man took them".  
  
His colleague stared at him. "Wow. I never thought.But that's perfectly okay, that's fine, you're still my friend."  
  
Doctor Johnson sighed. He had no idea how he would explain this to his fiancée.  
  
CVYCVYCVYCVY  
  
Spike could feel the blood rushing to his head. His cheeks, more specifically. He was blushing. Perhaps taking the doctor's clothes wasn't the best idea, especially if Spike didn't want to be noticed.  
  
Spike quickly sprinted down the street, accidentally bumping into an innocent stranger in his haste. Turning to show his good will, he quickly ducked into a clothing store and checked how much money was in his brand new wallet.  
  
CVYCVYCVYCVY  
  
Spike was ready to take on the world, now. Well, no. He was ready to take on a goodly portion of the world, maybe 5 or 6 people. If he was lucky. In any case, Spike now had some new clothes which apparently fit in with what everybody else was wearing.  
  
Now, for food and drink. And information, if he could find it.  
  
Zeroing in on a bar, Spike crossed the busy street, making his own personal intersection. After making it across with several curses ringing in his ears, he entered the bar.  
  
Exit 1.  
  
Okay, I finally got up and finished the first chapter. Yay me.  
  
Coming up next: Spike finds food, some nice alcohol, and even some information. But wait.Now he's in a junkyard? Perhaps a raging drunk wasn't the best person to ask.  
  
I'll try to get the next chapter up sometime next week. But I'm notorious for breaking promises. 


	2. Drunk old men, and silly little children

Alright, here's my attempt at a second chapter for this thing. Quick summary: Spike woke up from cold sleep after getting killed by Vicious, throttled a doctor, stole his clothes, pick pocketed somebody, stole their wallet and bought new clothes, then he went into a bar. Yeah. It'll all get explained. I hope.  
  
Disclaimer: If I owned Cowboy Bebop, then this wouldn't be FANfiction now, would it? Right.  
  
Dreaming - Chapter Two.  
  
XXXXX  
  
The first thing Spike noticed in the bar was the smell. Rancid and rotten, it seemed to coat everything in the area, soaking itself into Spike's very pores.  
  
The second thing Spike noticed was the silence. Yes, everybody stopped talking when somebody they hadn't seen entered the bar. It was critical, in a way. That was the time for the bar occupant to size up the newcomer, and the newcomer to decide if he REALLY needed a drink that bad.  
  
But somehow, this silence was different. There was tension here, more so than usual. Spike didn't know why, but he felt like he was expected to do something. What, Spike couldn't imagine.  
  
Walking up to the bar, Spike asked for a beer. Normally, the silence would stop here.  
  
It didn't. Obviously Spike hadn't done anything yet. Or at least, Spike hadn't done anything incredible yet.  
  
Well, far be it for Spike to disappoint all the people here. After a quick scan of the bar, Spike walked up to who looked like the toughest guy in here.  
  
Looking at the guy, Spike could see that the tension was building even more.  
  
Spike greeted the man, in his customary way.  
  
"Yo".  
  
The guy stared at him for a couple seconds, then returned the greeting, in his fashion. "Whaddaya want?" He asked, voice rough.  
  
Spike smiled at him disarmingly. "Ah, I just wanted to ask you a question, is all".  
  
The guy glared at him, not fooled by his jovial manner. "Well, ask it and go away. Ah'm busy here".  
  
Spike's smile grew even wider. Carefully, he tensed his right arm, then loosened it. "Well, here's the question". Very carefully, he got right next to the guy's ear and spoke softly. "What would you do.if I broke your nose right now?"  
  
The guy contemplated that, coming right back with the wittiest answer ever. "Huh?" You could see the lack of comprehension on his face.  
  
So Spike grabbed the guy's head and slammed it into the table, breaking his nose. "Ya know, if I did that. What would you do?"  
  
The guy wasn't really in any shape to answer, so Spike shrugged and moved away. Getting his beer, he addressed the bar as a whole.  
  
"Alright, let's try something a little simpler. If I wanted to find the mob, where would I look?"  
  
The mob question was a calculated risk Spike was taking. If anybody had the ability to sneak Spike into a Cold Sleep facility with nobody noticing, it would be the mob.  
  
The silence continued. Spike frowned, this wasn't how it was supposed to go.  
  
Selecting somebody at random, Spike walked over to the table while nursing his beer.  
  
"How about you? Ya know where I would find the Mob?"  
  
Spike couldn't help smiling internally, the poor guy looked like he was going to faint any minute.  
  
"Usually, people don' go lookin' fer da mob, da mob goes lookin' fer dem."  
  
Spike turned and zeroed in on the speaker. It was an old guy, probably homeless. He was sitting on the floor next to the fireplace, with a rattle old blanket wrapped around him. His straggly white hair reached down nearly to the floor, and his bony old hands protectively clutched a tankard of something black and steaming.  
  
"But if I was you, I'd go ta da junkyard. I've heard sed that da mob can be found dere, if ya got the money ta intrest 'em". Wheezing softly, the old man's head sank down to his chest. Slowly, he took a drink and was rejuvenated, bringing his head up to look Spike in the eyes. "Yes, that'd be wad I'd do, if I was you". Slowly, his voice began to slur. "Yesh, shurly yeh kin fahndem thare, if yeh jusht look harhd 'nuff". His head slipping back down to his chest, he began to snore quietly.  
  
Spike walked over and picked the man up by the blanket, shaking him roughly. "What junkyard, old man? Why would the mob be there? If you're fooling with me I swear you'll regret it". With the threats unheard, the old man only slept peacefully. Spike set the man down. Turning, he glared at everybody and they looked away. Quickly, Spike tucked the semi-full wallet into the man's blanket. He would find it when he woke up, perhaps he could find a place to stay. There was enough in there for a new blanket, at the very least.  
  
Setting the beer down next to the old man, Spike quickly and purposefully walked out of the bar. Simultaneously, everybody relaxed.  
  
"Well, he's back", commented one patron quietly. "Anybody know what's up with all that mob-talk?"  
  
Conversation ceased quickly as the doors opened once again.  
  
Spike grabbed the nearest man by the collar. Growling in his face, Spike asked him, "You. Where's the nearest junkyard?"  
  
Pointing, the man indicated the direction. Spike smiled. "Thanks", he stated. He turned, and walked right out of the bar again.  
  
The bartender sighed. "Yep, that's Spike".  
  
XXXXX  
  
Spike picked up a piece of junk. Looking at it, he decided it wasn't worth it to lug it around town until he found the Bebop, so he threw it over his shoulder.  
  
"Stupid old man", Spike muttered. "Stupid old drunk man". Spike kicked an old refrigerator in anger. "Aw, yeah, jess go to the damn junkyard, the mob'll be there, I swear on my left nut". Spike mimicked the old man, angry at him. "There's no mob here, and why would there be? This is just a stupid old junkyard. All that's in here is just stupid old junk people threw away. They didn't give it to the stupid old mob, what would the mob want with people's old junk? Never should have listened to that stupid old man.I bet he'd fit in this fridge pretty damn nicely".  
  
Turning, Spike left the junkyard. By virtue of the fact that Spike lacked a second pair of eyes in the back of his head, he failed to see a head pop up out of the junk. The head disappeared, only to reappear a good twenty feet closer to Spike.  
  
Spike turned around quickly, with his fingers pointed like a gun. The decided lack of anything interesting made him turn back, blushing slightly.  
  
The head popped up again. It was promptly followed by shoulders, torso, legs, and feet. Spiderlike, the child smoothly crawled down the pile of trash. Spike kept on walking, and the child kept on crawling.  
  
Swiftly, Spike lunged backwards and turned, grabbing the child by the shirt. Yanking said child upwards, Spike began to snarl at her. "Alright, Ed, I've had enough of your games. What are you-" Spike stopped, and the child smiled happily at him.  
  
"Hello, Spikey". XXXXX  
  
Alright, that's done with. I'm actually having fun with this, though I have no idea where it's going. I should probably write that out, otherwise I just know I'll end up in a hole. Ah well, I'm a risk taker by nature.  
  
Hey, any of you guys read the new Harry Potter book? I got it at about 1 AM the day it was released, and I got home at about 1:30. I sat down on the couch and read until 6:30. Yes, that means I didn't get any sleep, but it was TOTALLY worth it. That's a damn fine book, in my opinion.  
  
On a different note, how many ya'll read Webcomics? I'm a Penny Arcade and MegaTokyo man myself, but a friend of mine likes Control Alt Delete. How about you?  
  
New note altogether, any of you watch Sealab 2021? That show is funny, I swear. My friends all think it's stupid, but that's what they say about anything I like. Oh well. I usually just ignore them. Or I mouth off and end up getting punched. Or something. I'm used to it, 'sall good. Yeah. I'll shut up now.  
  
I'll try to get the next chapter to you sometime by this Friday, but I really have no idea. Sorry. 


	3. Water Glass Binoculars

Alright, this is the next chapter. Quick shout out to some folks, namely: Jeril Dragonsoul, Jen, Thwarted Shani, and Dawn Moon. Ya'll guys made me sit down and write this chapter, even if you don't know it. Stop whining and accept your credit.  
  
Disclaimer: I put this in the first chapter, do I really need it again?  
  
XXXXX  
  
Yanking said child upwards, Spike began to snarl at her. "Alright, Ed, I've had enough of your games. What are you-" Spike stopped, and the child smiled happily at him.  
  
"Hello, Spikey".  
  
Dreaming: Chapter 3  
  
Spike recoiled, dropping the person he was holding. Lithely, the adolescent child landed on all fours, then slowly stood up.  
  
"Hello again, Spikey".  
  
Spike stuttered for a moment, finally managing to get a sentence out.  
  
"Who the hell are you?" He demanded. The child frowned. "You don't remember me"? He asked.  
  
Spike smiled slightly. He did, actually. "Well, that depends. When exactly did you dye your hair black, Ed?"  
  
The child stared at him, taken aback. "My hair is naturally black, Spikey. Don't you remember me? And who's Ed, silly?"  
  
Spike stared, mouth agape. This girl wasn't Ed? She looked just like her.no. She didn't. This child's hair was tousled still, but it was a good amount shorter, and it was dirty black, instead of a vivid red. Like Ed, the lack of shoes and socks was apparent, but the other clothes remained roughly the same. A dirty and smudged tank top coupled with a pair of bright orange shorts. Spike grabbed the child and pulled him out of the pile of junk.  
  
"Where we going, Spikey?" The child asked, plaintively. Spike grunted, then gave a more literal response.  
  
"I'm going to buy you food, and you're going to tell me where you know me from, and where everybody else is".  
  
The child smiled happily at the thought of free food, saliva dripping from his lips. He wriggled out of Spike's hands and landed on the concrete sidewalk. "I can walk by myself now, see?" The child began a carousing lollygag, zooming around random people with arms outstretched. After several seconds of that, the child decided to walk normally. For ten seconds. Then he decided that he wanted a job in the Ministry of Silly Walks, and began trying out various styles. Sneaking a glance backwards, he checked to see if Spikey was laughing yet.  
  
Spike wasn't, but was going to start any minute now. He had been having a crazy day so far, and this Not-Ed child Spike found made him realize how much he missed the old Bebop gang already. Unconsciously, Spike quickened his pace. The quicker Spike could buy food for the kid, the quicker he could get information on who he was and how he got frozen.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"Wow, Spikey!! This menu is really big!!! I can't read it, though. Different language. Will you translate for me?" The kid stared at Spike imploringly. Spike sighed, his head in his hands. Already he was beginning to regret this.  
  
"Kid, the menu's upside down. Flip it over, and you can read it." A sudden CRACK made Spike look up; the kid had twisted his neck and turned his head upside down.  
  
"Ooo..so much food. I can have anything I want, right?" Spike nodded, silently. Reaching down, he felt for his wallet. He didn't find it, and cursed under his breath. He remembered giving it to the drunk. Spike began to think very hard.  
  
"Kid, I need you to order lots and lots of food, okay? I need to food to come out in waves." The kid giggled. He was a lot like Ed, actually. Except for the whole not knowing who Ed was, of course. The kid's happy words broke into Spike's reminiscing.  
  
"Spikey.I wanna get this an this an this an this an this." He went on and on, pointing with his toes. Spike ignored the odd looks he was getting from the other patrons.  
  
"I'll get you whatever you want, but first, I need you to answer some questions I have."  
  
The kid put down the menu and looked at Spike through a circle made by his legs. "Okay, Spikey. I'll answer anything you want. Unless I don't want to answer. Or I don't know."  
  
"That's good enough for me, kid. First, do you have a name?" The kid giggled.  
  
"I have lots of names, Spikey. Do you want some of them?" Spike nodded. "Well, you can't have any. All my names are mine, not yours. Go find your own name, Spikey." Spike sighed. This was going to be a long day. The kid was instantly contrite. "Oh, I'm sorry, Spikey, I didn't know you would feel so bad..Here, you can have one of my names. I'm not using this one right now." Quickly, the kid ripped a piece of tablecloth off and produced a grimy pencil from somewhere. He scribbled something on it and tossed it to Spike.  
  
Spike looked at it in astonishment. "Your name is Matthew Saunders McGee?" The kid gurgled his free water happily.  
  
"Weren't you listening? I told you I wasn't using that name right now. So I gave it to you. Should I call you Matthew? WAIT!! I wanna call you McGee. Is that okay, McGee?"  
  
Spike began to remember why he missed Jet and Faye more than he missed Ed. "No, you can't call me McGee. You're pushing it with the Spikey thing, kid. Take your name back and I'll rephrase my question. What should I call you?"  
  
The kid stared at him through water glass binoculars. "Oooo.everything's so big..wow.."  
  
Spike growled, his ire rising. "Kid.."  
  
"Woww...hey, look at that lady!! She's got a gun.whee.."  
  
Spike's head snapped around. This would be a good way to get information on what happened, at least. "Kid, where's the lady with the gun?"  
  
"Whee.she's right over there, Spikey..vroom.." The kid pointed with his toes. Spike looked in the direction of the toes and saw the lady with the gun. She was very quietly emptying the till into her purse. Spike slowly got up and made his way over to her.  
  
"Look out, Spikey!! She's got henchmen, and they're really big!! Oh wait, you're just as big as they are." The kid took the glasses off. "Now you're small..big.small.big.small." He fell off the chair with a loud crash. "Billy is dizzy..Everybody should stay the same size now, please." He fell asleep with a loud snore.  
  
Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, Spike quickly beat the total and utter crap out of the henchmen, ignoring how large they were supposed to be. When that enviable task was finished, he grabbed the gun from the lady. With a frightened look at her henchmen, she began to run for the exit. Spike attempted to shoot her, only to find that the gun was a bluff. Empty. Cursing, he tucked it into his waistband and began to follow her.  
  
The chase wasn't very long or hard. As soon as she got to Spike's table, she fell with a large crash. Spike approached warily and saw that she managed to tangle her foot in Billy's lanky legs. Holding back a smile, Spike slung her over his shoulder. At least the kid was good for something, he thought. Picking Billy up by the shirt, he slung him over his other shoulder, and quickly exited the restaurant.  
  
The clerk stared at the empty doorway, unsure of what had happened. Looking down, he saw that the bag full of money was missing.  
  
"Um..sir?"  
  
XXXXX  
  
Spike walked down the street humming a jaunty little tune. He pulled the bag out from inside his shirt and opened it quickly. A rough appraisal put the value of the money within at around 3000 woolongs, though Spike would have to count it to be sure. He snapped the bag shut and tucked it back in its hiding place. Billy began to stir, so Spike dropped him on the walk unceremoniously. "Kid, start walking. I ain't carrying you all the way to the police station."  
  
Billy prostrated himself on the ground and began to whine unmercifully. "Oh please, sir..don't turn me in. I only did it for my dear old ma. She be sitting in the junkyard sick and starving, and I only stole your wallet to pay for food and medicine and if I don't come back then she'll just die, sir, she'll just die." Spike kicked him softly.  
  
"Get up, kid. You're making a scene and I'm not turning you in, anyway. Stop whining."  
  
Billy looked up, and his face began to glow, tears gone. "Oh, hello, McGee. What are you doing there?"  
  
Spike growled loudly and kicked the kid again. "Don't call me McGee, kid. C'mon, I'm going to the police station to turn this old bat in." The Old Bat began to kick and scream fitfully and Spike absentmindedly rammed his elbow into the pit of her stomach. "Go to sleep for a while, huh?" His answer was a snore, so he kept on walking. Making sure that Billy followed him, Spike turned around to see Billy snoozing on the sidewalk.  
  
Spike picked him up and dropped him again. "Billy, wake up. We're leaving." Billy rubbed his eyes sleepily and got to his feet.  
  
"But Spikey.You told me to go to sleep, remember? I'm so sleepy." Billy's head fell to his chest and a second snore escaped his lips.  
  
Spike snarled at him. "This is why I don't like kids." He muttered. Picking the child up, he slung him back over his shoulder.  
  
"Wheee.I'm flying." Billy muttered softly. Spike smiled grimly and began pushing on towards the police station where he could hopefully pick up some bounty, and perhaps even get some information on himself.  
  
XXXXX  
  
Alright, that's the third chapter done. I'm liking this, actually.  
  
I gave the kid a name!! Woot. I chose Billy cause I could. So no, Billy isn't Ed. Sorry to burst anybody's bubble.  
  
To answer somebody's question, No. Spike doesn't know it was all a dream. Not yet. I'm thinking he'll find out in the next chapter, though. I have no idea who'll tell him.  
  
I've finally decided where I'm going with all of this. No idea where it'll end, but I've at least got a goal to work for. Will I tell you guys? Don't be stupid. If I did that, why would you read?  
  
If you review, I'll try to get the next chapter out faster. If you do a good review, then I'll even mention your name. Is that enough for you skinflints?  
  
I should be able to get the next chapter out by next Monday or so. Of course, I said last time that I would get THIS chapter out by Friday, and here it is Tuesday. I write faster than I think I do. So.the next chapter should be out sometime between tomorrow and Monday. Yeah. 


	4. Grand theft Bigrig, it ain't

Alright, this is the next chapter. By the way, I deserve major kudos for Billy, the Ed-like character. No, I don't know why he's like that. I do know that it's bloody hard writing him. His mind works in a way unlike mine, so I really have no idea what he's going to be doing at any specific moment, so it's hard to write it. It would be so much easier to make him just a normal person like Spike, but no. I love you guys too much to do that.  
  
Shout out: Shanni. Yeah. And Jeril, too. Cause he's just cool. Yeah. And that Mieow person, or whatever your name is. Too lazy to look it up, but you reviewed one of the chapters. I think.  
  
Dreaming: 4.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"What?!", Spike shouted. "Whatta you mean?!"  
  
"Well, this looks like it's your first bounty. I don't get it, what's the big deal?" The policeman stated with a questioning voice.  
  
"The deal is that I've caught lots of guys. Seriously, I'm a big bounty hunter. How could this be my first bounty?" Spike was incredulous. He had made it to the police station to find out what happened to himself, and he found out something, alright. He had never caught a bounty in his life. It didn't make any sense, Spike just KNEW he had caught bounty heads before. Lots of them.  
  
So why weren't they listed? An idea struck Spike. He could get the police officer to look up some of the bounties Spike and Jet and Faye and Ed had caught, that would show the officer Spike wasn't crazy. "Here, look up the name Rhint. I helped Jet catch that, my name should be under the listing. Look up Baker Panchorero, too. I caught him, he was worth around 800,000 or so woolongs, wanted for Robbery. Abdul Hakim, wanted for pet theft. He stole the famous data dog, remember?" Spike's voice faded slowly as the officer shook his head.  
  
"I'm sorry, sir. None of those names are registered as Bounty Heads, either at large or apprehended. They don't exist, or they aren't in our records. And trust me; if you had caught them, they would be in our records."  
  
Spike grabbed the moniter from the officer and typed the names into the search engine himself. His hand shaking, he managed to type the entire name of Baker Panchorero in without a mistake. Spasticly, he hit the Enter button and waited for the computer to finish searching.  
  
The electronic message blinked slowly, reflected in Spike' two brown eyes of the same shade.  
  
::No Result:: ::No Result:: ::No Result::  
  
Spike stood up silently. Perfectly calm, he grabbed the 75 woolong bounty he had made on the petty thief. Billy was busy balancing himself on the officer's phone with one finger, Spike tapped him on his side.  
  
"Billy, get on your feet. We're leaving." Billy flipped onto his feet, dirtying the police's routine reports with his grimy toes.  
  
"Where are we going, Spikey?", Billy asked tentatively?  
  
"I don't know. Out. The junkyard. A bar. I don't know, I don't care. Just out."  
  
"Whee!! I love an adventure!!" Happily, Billy jumped to the floor and began to walk around on his hands.  
  
As Spike and Billy exited the station, Spike could hear the officer calling after him.  
  
"Hey, sir, wait!! Do you want me to register you as a bounty hunter or something? It's no trouble."  
  
Spike waved carelessly at the officer over his shoulder, not looking back. "Just register me as Spike Spiegal, that'll be good."  
  
Further cries were ignored and unheard.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"Spikey, when are we stopping? I'm tired and I'm thirsty and I'm hungry and my feet hurt and we've been walking forever and I want to stop and die." Billy whined incessantly.  
  
Spike grouched at him angrily. "Billy, you slept twenty minutes ago, you have water to drink half an hour ago, I bought you some fruit fifteen minutes ago, you've been walking on your hands all this time and we've been walking for 20 minutes. If you want to die, there's a nice ocean I could throw your body in just a couple minutes from here. Now shut up and stop whining, I need to think."  
  
Cowed, Billy flipped onto his feet and began to trot alongside Spike, keeping time with his step.  
  
"Ooo..there's a ship flying past..pretty.." Billy's head tracked the ship and twisted around behind his back to keep watching. "There must be a harbor or docking bay nearby, can we go look, Spikey?"  
  
Spike almost snarled at Billy, but then he thought better of it. A ship could be very useful, if Spike used it correctly.  
  
"That's right, Billy. Let's go look at the ship dock."  
  
Giggling simply, Billy began to run in circles around Spike while making little airplane noises through his nose. Spike began to run, pretending Billy didn't exist.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"wow..so many ships, Spikey. Can I have one? I want that one.." Childlike, Billy pointed at the most flashy of them.  
  
"We can't have that one, it's too noticeable. However.., I'm positive that I'll be able to get that one." Spike used his thumb to point at a simple red ship, not unlike the Swordfish that Spike once owned, to the best of his knowledge  
  
XXXXX  
  
Casually, Spike walked up to the ship. Delicately, Spike ran his fingers along the seam of the bubble window, until they found purchase on a hidden catch. Spike quickly worked a thin slide of metal into the catch and with a sharp twist, the hood popped open. Spike jumped into the hatch and Billy quickly followed, marveling at all of the little buttons.  
  
Spike hurriedly closed the bubble and began to gain access to the ignition wires. With a little aid from a knife, Spike stripped and crossed the wires, smiling as the engine hummed into life  
  
Spike sat back in the familiar chair, feeling his hands grasp the controls exactly like he always had.  
  
Or had he? As Spike flew out of the yard ignoring the hails from the control tower, Spike thought about what he knew so far.  
  
It was a small amount of information, that was for sure. Billy knew him, though Spike had no idea where from. Despite all of Spike's memories, Spike had apparently never caught a Bounty Head in his life. Neither had Jet or Faye, for that matter. None of the bounty heads that Spike remembered even existed, in point of fact.  
  
And most importantly, Spike had been frozen for some amount of time, by somebody. Spike didn't know who was responsible, or how long he had been frozen. He knew where to go to get the answers, though.  
  
"Spikey? I love being in space and all, but where are we going?" Billy's plaintive voice broke into Spike's musings.  
  
Smiling grimly, Spike answered the question. "We're going to go find an old friend of mine, Billy. You'll like her, I think. She's just like you."  
  
"How much like Billy?" Billy wondered aloud.  
  
Again, Spike smiled, this time with humor. "Trust me. She's just like you."  
  
Billy poked Spike, wanting more information. "Does she have a name like Billy?"  
  
"Yeah. She calls herself Radical Edward, but her full name is Edward Wong Hau Pepilusky Chivrousky the Fourth. You can call her Ed, though."  
  
Billy giggled at the long name. "Ed."  
  
Staring into the stars, Billy repeated the simple name until he fell asleep.  
  
XXXXX  
  
Okay, that's done. I get this stuff pumped out faster than I think I should. Huh.  
  
So Spike's going to go find Ed. Yeah.  
  
How about this, guys? I'll hold the next chapter hostage until I get an arbitrary amount of reviews from now. Three, let's say. I set my standards low. If you've already reviewed before, then you can review again. I won't write this if nobody's reading it.  
  
Oh yeah. If anybody wants to Beta read, or anything.I dunno. Send me mail at darlantean@hotmail.com, I guess. I would probably just end up sending you whatever I write every couple of days, and you would tell me what you think of it, and I would decide to write more. Anybody up for it? 


	5. We finally found it! Earth, that is

Rant at end, read for information.  
  
Dreaming: Chapter 5.  
  
"There it is..", Spike muttered under his breath. He hadn't been quite sure what planet he was on in the first place, so finding Earth was more difficult than it should have been.  
  
Spike drew in closer to the planet in question, and sucked in his breath sharply. "Dammit, how did I end up at Venus? Earth should be around here somewhere.."  
  
Irritably, Spike pulled away from Mars and began heading towards where Earth should be.  
  
"Spikey.That's Mercury you're heading towards. You need to turn around to get to Earth.."  
  
In the void of space, sound doesn't carry. Even if it did, nobody except Billy was around to hear Spike's scream of frustration.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"Spikey..I'm bored. Talk to me."  
  
Spike deadpanned at the request. "I don't make good small talk, kid."  
  
Billy sighed and rolled over while floating. "Ask me questions, then. I'm bored, bored, bored, bored, bored." Like a mantra, Billy began repeating the word 'Bored' in a singsong voice.  
  
To shut him up, Spike quickly thought of a question. "Here's a question for you, Billy. How do you know me?"  
  
Billy giggled. "That's a simple question, Spikey. Ask me something hard, like..how do you spell glixididdlyoniquare?"  
  
Spike looked at the adolescent. "Billy, I can't spell it, I can barely pronounce it, and I have secret doubts that it's even a real word." Billy laughed at Spike's simplicity.  
  
"Silly, that's what makes the question hard."  
  
Spike smiled in spite of himself. The kid was plenty weird, but he made for good company when there was nobody else.  
  
"C'mon, Billy. I'm serious. How do you know me?"  
  
Billy sighed, blatantly showing his dislike of the simple question. "Spikey found me when I was little."  
  
Spike waited for more, but information was not forthcoming. "I need a bit more than that, Billy. Help me out here."  
  
"Okay...but Spikey owes Billy when he gets to Earth, okay?" Spike nodded his agreement to the proffered deal and Billy took a deep breath in preparation for his speech.  
  
"So. Spikey found Billy when Billy was little and living in the junkyard. Spikey gave Billy a place to stay, and then Spikey went out on a walk. He didn't come back, so Billy ran away back to the junkyard. Now Spikey's back, and we're going to EARTH!!" Billy shouted the word happily, excited to be going on such an adventure.  
  
Spike pursed his lips, absorbing and contemplating the new information. "Billy, how long ago did I first meet you?" Billy ceased his celebrating and stuck ten fingers and 1 toe in front of Spike's face. "Okay, when did I go on the long walk?" Three fingers disappeared, and the toe remained. "And finally, how old are you now?" The three fingers reappeared and were joined by 4 toes. "Ah."  
  
Spike thought about this. He had known Billy for 11 years, surely Billy would know who Ed was. But why didn't he recognize her name? Something was wrong, and it concerned Spike in a major way.  
  
"Spikey..You know that we passed Earth a long time ago, right?"  
  
Cursing, Spike turned the ship around and headed towards Earth for the third time. He had enough things on his mind, Ed would be able to clear everything up.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"Finally, we're here on EARTH!! Earthearthdirtdirtyoldearth!!" Billy spun around while singing his song of happiness about how dirty Earth was. Spike pointedly ignored him.  
  
"So..Now that we're here, let's get a move on. I want to find Ed and pry some information out of her." Spike followed his own advice and began walking towards a village in the distance. Hurriedly, Billy followed Spike, still singing his little song.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"Excuse me, have you seen-" Spike was cut off by the cranky old man.  
  
"No, I haven't seen Ed. No, I haven't seen Radical Edward. Yes, I'v heard of Radical Edward the hacker. No, I won't help you look for her. Now go away."  
  
All of his questions answered, Spike left the guy alone, muttering under his breath. "Stupid old coot, he could have at least let me ask the questions instead of just listening to me talking to everybody else."  
  
Spike had been asking for information in the marketplace for about an hour now, and his results had been not dissimilar from the exchange he had just now. It was as if Radical Edward the hacker didn't exist.  
  
"Billy, c'mon. We're leaving."  
  
Showing an unusual grasp of the moment, Billy refrained from doing anything unusual from the fear that Spike was looking for somebody to hit.  
  
XXXXX  
  
"I LOVE junkyards!!" Billy shouted exultantly, throwing trash and refuse into the air.  
  
"I wish I shared your sentiment. Actually, I'm glad I don't." Grumbled Spike. "Now c'mon, stop playing around and help me find this person."  
  
Billy giggled at Spike's antics. "Silly Spikey..You can't find Edward if she lives in a junkyard like Billy. Edward will find you."  
  
Spike turned in the direction of Billy's voice, gearing up for a very large shout. As he took a deep breath, something knocked his foot off of the ground, and Spike fell the short distance to the ground, landing with a thump on somebody's old blanket with a clang. Rubbing his head, Spike sat up and moved the blanket to discover a Refrigerator  
  
"Hello, Spike-person."  
  
Billy jumped in shock and ambled over to the tousled head sticking out of the ground. "Who is the head, Spikey?"  
  
An arm erupted from the garbage, lifting green goggles off of the head they apparently belonged to. "Am I only a head? I wonder where the rest of me went.."  
  
Billy smiled happily, and pointed at the arm. The head turned, and visibly relaxed at the sight of the appendage. "Oh good. Edward was afraid she had lost herself." Climbing out of the trash, Ed curled up into a ball and rolled over to Billy's feet. Billy copied Ed and also crouched into a ball. Together, they rolled over to Spike, bumping into him as he attempted to stand on the unstable terrain.  
  
"Moo"  
  
"Maa"  
  
"Moo"  
  
"Maa"  
  
The two childred bleated happily at Spike's obvious discomfort. Spike sat down heavily and kicked at the ball with red hair.  
  
"Okay, Ed. You've had your fun, now it's time to give me some answers. What's happened to me?"  
  
Ed hurridly stood up. Billy began bumping at her feet, too. Spike put him in the fridge.  
  
"This appears to be an uncomfortable place to have a discussion, Spike- person. Please, let us proceed to my dwelling, where we may have tea, and other manners of fine snacks." Pompously, Ed recited her little speech, then giggled. "Edward always wanted to say that. Hurry, Spike. Let's go!!"  
  
Ed quickly yanked open the fridge door and dived in, jerking it shut after her. Spike was at a loss for words.  
  
"Hey..wait.."  
  
XXXXX  
  
And now, the rant I promised you guys at the beginning of the chapter.  
  
First, I guess I owe you guys an apology. I promised to have this up by last Friday at the latest, and it's now past the Friday AFTER the Friday I was talking about. That's probably around two weeks later than you guys expected, and that's wrong. I shouldn't have done that. I feel like I've let you guys down, I'm sorry.  
  
However, here's the reason behind it. First, I have a girlfriend. I love her, she's a great person, we love spending time together.  
  
She moved to New Jersey on Wednesday. For somebody like me (Who lives in Washingtong), that's a large distance, no matter how you look at it. She's been accepted into boarding school, and the odds are we'll never date each other again. The next time I'll get to see her will be for about a week sometime next summer. That's hard for me, and it's been taking up a lot of my time.  
  
Also: In the middle of my girlfriend leaving, I'm also moving. It's nothing catastrophic, just a 45 minute hop from Seattle to Carnation. However, I need to do my share in getting the house packed, and I also need to pack up my room. What time I'm not spending talking with my girlfriend on the phone is spend putting things into boxes.  
  
Finally: Until just a couple days ago, I had gotten exactly ONE review on the latest chapter. C'mon, guys. I need more than that, seriously. Reviews are what inspire me to write. I appriciate the sentiment of the review that was left by Midnightoasis, but it really isn't enough. It wasn't until I got some more reviews by Jeril Dragonsoul that I even wrote the first word of this, I think. I finally decided to finish it when Meirelle Emeraldeyes reviewed, and then I found myself severely lacking in time to write anything at all.  
  
But, all that's over with. I honestly have no idea when I'll be able to post the next chapter. I probably won't even start writing it until I get at least two or so reviews on this one, so keep that in mind. If you want to read any more of this, you seriously do need to review.  
  
I'll be moving in just about 3 weeks. When I finish with that, all I need to do is unpack my room, and I think I can get that done pretty quickly. 


End file.
